Big Tech took the first of what seems to be a coordinated step against pro-Trump voices this week.
After removing several of his posts and suspending him from his account, Twitter announced on Friday that it would ban President Trump from the platform entirely. Facebook had already done the same. Shortly after Twitter’s announcement, Apple threatened to remove Parler, an alternative app to Twitter that has attracted a good number of conservatives in recent months, from the app store unless the company changes its content moderation policies.
This is unprecedented, but it is surely a sign of things to come. I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve been wary of the argument that conservative censorship is a legitimate threat, but Big Tech is sending the message loud and clear: Political opinions with which Silicon Valley disagrees will not be tolerated.
Twitter argued Trump’s ban was necessary because of recent events and to prevent future incitement of violence. There is no doubt that Trump’s actions this week were disgraceful, but whether they directly incited the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday is a point of debate, as my colleague Tom Rogan notes. Moreover, how do you think this will make the millions of Trump supporters, who believe that there is a coordinated campaign being waged not only against Trump but against them, feel? What the nation needs now is unity; Twitter’s actions will cause further division.
However, what alarms me most about this recent step is the implication it has for free speech. Yes, Facebook, Twitter, and Apple are private companies, and they have the legal right to suspend anyone they so choose from their platforms. But the American tradition demands that we protect even highly controversial speech — speech that is hurtful, offensive, and wrong.
Big Tech might not be held to the same standard as our federal government, but these companies must understand that they are knowingly quashing democratic participation, fueling resentment, and paving the way for a bitter backlash. This was a mistake. And Twitter, Facebook, and Apple will realize it before long.
